One confusing icon on Instagram is the person icon with the plus sign. Most users don’t know what this icon means or what clicking on it does.
If this icon also confuses you on Instagram’s platform, we’ve created this guide for you.
This article explains the person icon with the plus sign on Instagram and how to use it correctly.
So, if this icon has confused you at some point, it’s time to get some much-needed clarity and answers to all your questions.
What Does the Little Person icon Mean on Instagram Next to Message?
The person icon with a plus sign is one of Instagram’s many features. This feature suggests other accounts you may be interested in following based on the profile you’re currently looking through.
This icon will typically appear only when you follow someone on Instagram.
This feature essentially suggests accounts that might be similar to the profile you’re visiting on Instagram.
If, for instance, you’re on a celebrity’s Instagram page, this icon could suggest other celebrities you might be interested in following.
Instagram and other social media platforms profit from our constant attention to our screens.
The more time we spend using the applications, the more possibilities they have to smuggle in some advertisements while we read through our feeds, flip through stories, or watch reels.
This is why it promotes business and individual accounts that it believes we will happily follow.
To be clear, this “suggested” feature is not the same as the old “Instagram suggested users” feature, which suggested Instagram profiles for new users to follow.
An algorithm chooses the suggested Instagram accounts and is surprisingly very successful.
Although the Suggested feature on Instagram has been around for about two years, it is still a function that could benefit your Instagram growth and marketing strategy.
Especially if you manage a business account on Instagram’s platform or if you’re a social media influencer.
Can You Turn This Plus icon off?
When someone selects the Follow option on your Instagram page, they will receive recommendations for other accounts they might also like to follow, such as those of friends or acquaintances.
Instagram’s follow suggestions might help locate accounts you might like, but they can also frequently recommend users you actively wish to avoid or are not interested in following.
There are ways to control these recommendations, regardless of why you want Instagram’s platform to stop recommending particular profiles.
You can disable these suggestions from showing up on your profile by following these steps:
To access your profile, tap the profile picture in the lower right.
1. Select Edit profile.
2. Untick the checkbox next to Similar account suggestions by tapping on it, then click on the Submit button.
If you’re using Instagram from a web browser, you can disable this feature as follows:
1. Click Profile after tapping on your profile photo in the top right corner of the page.
2. Afterward, select Edit profile.
3. After you click to uncheck the box next to Similar account suggestions, select Submit.
Keep in mind that if you disable account suggestions for your profile, nobody else will see you as a suggestion either.
Am I Suggested on This Plus Icon?
If you have the “suggested” feature enabled in your profile, then Instagram will be able to and is most likely suggesting your account for people to follow on other people’s profiles.
The bigger your Instagram account, the more likely you’re suggested on other people’s profiles.
However, as stated earlier, if you’ve disabled the suggestion feature on your profile at some point, then it means that Instagram is not recommending your account for anyone to follow.
If you would like more visibility for your Instagram account, it’s a good idea to keep this feature enabled so that more people can see your profile when they check out the profiles of accounts that are similar to yours.
Did This Icon Change?
This “suggested” feature, which is a person icon with a plus sign, used to be a downward arrow on the Instagram app,
so if you’re wondering why you can’t see a downward arrow anymore, then it’s because it has changed.
You’ll typically find the “suggested” feature’s icon in people’s Instagram profiles, suggesting similar accounts you might be interested in following to grow your Instagram network.
How Does Instagram Work Out Who to Suggest?
The algorithms created by Instagram’s developers to suggest users that you should follow are only becoming more innovative.
Numerous criteria are taken into account by the algorithms that strive to give you new and relevant follow suggestions, including:
- Linked social media accounts: Considering that Facebook owns Instagram, it is not surprising that the two social media platforms are closely linked.
- A person will commonly show up as a suggestion on Instagram shortly after you friend them on Facebook.
- This is similar to how someone who follows you on Instagram frequently shows up in your Facebook friend suggestions.
- Phone contacts: Instagram will also suggest people for you to follow based on the contacts on your phone.
- After you link your contacts to your Instagram account, those contacts will suggest themselves as possible accounts for you to follow.
- It’s possible that even if you don’t have that user in your contacts, they may have your contact in their list.
- Search history: If you recently looked for someone on Instagram and took the time to go through their profile without following them, they will later show up as a suggestion.
- The algorithm also considers how much time you spend on their profile, linked photos, and other factors.
- Use of Hashtags: If you frequently use another Instagram user’s hashtags in your posts and those hashtags are specific enough, these users are likely to appear in your suggested friends’ list.
- Shared Friends: Instagram recommends that you follow users with whom you have a lot of mutual friends. A person is more likely to show up on your list of suggested friends if you have more friends in common with them.
Some computer algorithms are now so effective that they give the impression of monitoring you.
However, if you take a moment to consider all the methods they use to arrive at accounts to suggest (as described above), then the accuracy of their suggestions will make sense to you.
Why Did This Icon Suddenly Appear?
If the person icon with a plus sign was not visible in your Instagram app before, but you can now suddenly see it when you click on people’s profiles,
it’s most likely because you just updated Instagram to its most recent version.
It’s not uncommon for some features to suddenly appear on an app if an upgrade to its latest version has occurred.
Should I Use This Icon?
You should use Instagram’s “suggested” feature if you’re an Instagram user looking to grow your profile and meet and follow new people.
Instagram makes this easy by using an algorithm to suggest users whose profiles and posts it thinks you’ll be interested in.
Instagram typically suggests these users based on profiles you already follow, so more often than not, the recommendations will be helpful to give you a more enjoyable experience on the app.
A particular set of Instagram users that will find this icon pretty helpful are users that own and manage a business account.
For instance, finding out who Instagram perceives as your competitors is one of the best ways to leverage the Instagram suggested function for your business.
Visit the Instagram profile for your company while logged in from a different account and click on the arrow in the top right corner to discover which accounts Instagram suggests you’re similar to.
This is a simple method for conducting a quick competition analysis, and you can find businesses you had no idea existed!
You may now monitor the Instagram profiles of your rivals to learn how they use the platform for their businesses.
Given that Instagram can tell you that your target audiences are similar, you can also use this “Suggested” function to identify other businesses to collaborate with.
You can also use this function to locate Instagram influencers to collaborate with to increase brand recognition and exposure on Instagram.
In essence, the person icon with a plus sign is Instagram’s way of suggesting accounts to you, and you can take advantage of it to find out and follow the right people based on your interests on Instagram, be it business or leisure.
Ask Instagram Support
If you still have any questions or concerns about the person icon with a plus sign on Instagram, it’s a good idea to reach out to Instagram’s support center.
Instagram’s support team is relatively simple to get in touch with. The issue is that it’s pretty challenging to get a response back, let alone a solution to your problem.
It’s thus crucial to be aware of all your options if you want to make reasonable progress when contacting Instagram support.
However, you should keep in mind that it’s very likely that you won’t hear back from them if you reach out via these means.
Normal Instagram users are less likely to get assistance, but it is still feasible. The best course of action is to send a support request through Instagram.com. The steps to do this successfully are as follows:
1. Click Instagram here to visit Instagram’s website.
2. Click Support at the bottom of the page on the website.
3. Click the Privacy and Safety Center link in the left-hand menu.
3. Select Report Something.
4. Select the problem you’re having by clicking on the option if you see it.
5. Find the link that says “Report it.”
You’ll see forms specific to each concern; take time to correctly fill out the form that relates the most to the issue you’re experiencing.
Regrettably, Instagram lacks a formal escalation pathway reserved just for influencers on the platform.
Your attempts to escalate through the established channels will typically be grouped with hundreds of thousands of other users who submit requests but have no profile picture and followers.
You may also be able to troubleshoot any issues by visiting Instagram’s help center. You should be able to see ways to fix the problem and get answers to any questions you might have.
Conclusion
The best apps are typically constantly seeking ways to improve the user experience.
Instagram is one such app, and with its “suggested” feature, Instagram users can grow a more extensive network that still manages to be relevant.
The “suggested” feature on Instagram presents as a person icon with a plus sign, and some users have shown varying degrees of confusion about what this icon means and what it helps you achieve on Instagram.
If you’ve read up to this point in this article, then we’re sure you should have gotten answers to most of your questions regarding this topic by now.
If not, you should consider reaching out to Instagram’s support center per the instructions we’ve provided in this guide.
Instagram is an app to be explored and enjoyed, and the “suggested” feature is one of many on Instagram that ensures you get the best user experience. So, take advantage of this feature to enjoy the best of Instagram.
